'Brave New World' Episode 1: Unhappiness is obsolete and with all the light, it's a dictator's dream come true
As 'Brave New World' unfurls slowly, we are quickly told during the first few show-setting scenes that in the "New World", there are three rules to keep the collective social body happy — no family, no monogamy and no privacy. Plus copious amounts of happy pills of all colors of the rainbow for different levels of anxiety or unhappiness.
In two separate scenes, the dissenting bodies of Lenina Crowne and Bernard Marx are policed. In Lenina's case, it is Bernard himself who chides her for her "selfishness" of sleeping exclusively with Henry Foster, depriving others of her and Foster's company. Her monogamous behavior is seen as a prelude to behavior like jealousy and possessiveness — negative emotions that no longer have a place in the New World.
In Bernand Marx's case, it is his tendency to disconnect from the hive mind and go "off-line" to be alone with his thoughts. His need for privacy is seen as a prelude to secrecy and individualism that can destroy the harmonious whole of the social body. The third "no family" rule is not explicitly referred to.
But we do see the gigantic hatchery where precise genetic tinkering produces humans with varying levels of intelligence from the highest Alpha Plus ones all the way down to the Epsilons — who are thought to be too stupid to even feel. The "no family" rule is to avoid the sort of tribal behavior humans resort to when they are protecting those with whom they share a bloodline — from nepotism to killing.
With no parental figures except the impersonal AI that rules over them benevolently, it's like a gigantic promiscuous teenage slumber party on a marijuana high, all the time. All interactions are shallow and meaningless because any depth of feeling triggers the darker side of human tendencies. Both Lenina and Bernand are seen as bugs in the system because they are doing things to actively excavate the "realness" in their interactions — or so the episode will have you believe. As much as the need for social engineering of the New World is explained as a way to curb dark human impulses, the actual thread that connects the two is that they are evading the 360-degree monitoring of every citizen.
The optic interface connected to the AI means that every individual is monitored 24/7. By making privacy abhorrent, nothing can be kept secret, making rebellion an impossibility. By making monogamy and family obsolete, there is no strong social bond that can compete and break away from the generic bonds between citizens of the New World. In fact, friends and lovers are encouraged to "report" on each other if they see any deviant behavior. It is an autocratic government's dream come true. With everything illuminated, there are no shadows to tuck in dissent.
It is obvious that the three golden rules don't make pain, dissatisfaction and human suffering obsolete — there would be no need for soma pills then. Even with the soma pills, Lenina and Bernard are unhappy as they tell each other as if confessing to a grave sin in the "Everyone Happy!" society. Being happy is the last "unspoken" rule of the New World. It is touted as a product of the social order. But, as we see, unhappiness is also actively policed and discouraged. Bernard is told pointedly that he is looking tired and unwell and needs a vacation to get his head on straight, for instance.
The "be happy" directive is the last and most effective tool in the arsenal of the all-powerful Big Brother government. Because if there is no unhappiness, why would anyone rebel?
'Brave New World' premiered on July 15 on Peacock.
